SORRY THIS UPDATE TOOK SOOOO LONG! Please enjoy and comment after reading! This one has some sweet Charles and Charli moments! And is all from Charles' POV
Charles
"Last box!" Liza drops the last of the moving boxes (this one is labeled kitchen) onto the counter in front of him. Charles sighs defeated... he thought he'd already put away all the kitchen utensils this box must have been hiding on the movers truck, there simply wasn't enough room for anything else. Worry began to overtake his brow and Liza snapped to attention. "Charles- hey look at me" he looks down and finds her brown eyes with his own baby blues and holds her gaze. "Downsizing can be daunting, I had to sell practically everything when I left New Jersey and moved in with Maggie. It's not fun but it's manageable. The girls rooms are already set up and yours too, this is the last box don't you dare fall apart on me over a box of spatulas and miss matched Tupperware." She bounces up on tiptoe gracefully and encouragingly kisses his cheek.
"You're right. It's just-"he sighs and rests his forehead to hers "I know this is the right move. It's closer to you" she smiles and wraps her arms around his waist as he wraps his arms around her pulling them closer. "Charli is here, the girls love it, and we really didn't need that audacious place anymore. I could almost justify it when I had to host book launches or some hotshot author but it's not for a part-time professor and assistant pitching coach."
"And you still have the place at Pound Ridge, for whenever you need to stroke your daddy warbucks alter ego."
"Very true, and the brownstone hasn't sold yet so till then I can still call it mine." She smiles playfully and asks
"Do you want me to buy the brownstone? You know to keep it in the family?" Charles' heart skipped as it always did when Liza would say something like this...family she certainly was and forever would be his family. And just like that his anxiety about uprooting his life and his daughters lives was washed away. Liza Miller has that effect on him, he bent his head and kissed her softly.
"An overpriced piece of real estate in Manhattan doesn't compare to what I have right here with me in Brooklyn." She initiates the kiss this time,their need intensifies and before they know it they're christening his brand new Brooklyn kitchen...and they didn't stop there. Later that night after they'd worked their way to the master bedroom Charles fell asleep holding the love of his life grinning like a fool...the happiest fool in Brooklyn.
The next two weeks were hectic, everyone was adjusting to their new normal and of course there were growing pains. Charles was sore to admit it but he seemed to be the most obdurate one in his clan. Liza made things better of course, but he was a born and bred Manhattanite and suddenly becoming a resident of the borough of Brooklyn didn't erased 46 years of having a stick up his ass.
Where Charles struggled the girls thrived. Nicole's artist soul was blossoming, and she was growing further and further away from the shy quite girl that always felt it was her job to keep everyone calm and at peace. Watching her flourish in her creativity and find her confidence outside of herself was worth leaving the city all on its own. Even Bianca seemed more suited for Brooklyn than Manhattan, she'd finally stopped trying to be the tough know-it-all smartass and was making friends her own age. None of which were in a gang nor did they curse like sailors. Their happiness kept most of his doubts and worries at bay.
Charles was preparing dinner for the girls and Liza on a random Tuesday evening when the music started playing. Awful soul wrenching music, the kind you blare when your a kid and you find out that your crush is taking someone else to the school dance. Music that twenty somethings all over the world are listening to while crying into a pint of ice cream because the love of their life didn't love them back. It was jarring to hear that sorrowful music creeping into their happy dinner time. Liza looks up from the manuscript she'd been writing notes on in red ink, question and concern flooding her eyes. But it's Bianca that asks
"Is Aunt Charli dying?" She barely looks up from her geography homework but Charles doesn't miss the snap of Nicole's head or the instant fear she displays on her small round face. Charles didn't miss Liza wrapping her arm around Nicole's shoulder to comfort his anxious child, or that Liza placed her other hand on Bianca's knee to quietly comfort her as well. His heart skipped a beat this woman knew Nicole needed a sweet comforting hug but she also knew that in spite of her tough independent exterior Bianca needed a small discrete display of love and comfort too, damn he loved her more and more everyday.
"No, your Aunt Charlotte isn't dying. She's just being dramatic."
"She sounds like that cat that got hit by a car last week." Nicole was working away at her bottom lip again, something she had been doing less and less of since making the move.
"Should we call Josh over to check on her? She's never grumpy or sad when he's around...Why is she so sad daddy?" Charles smiles at his youngest and ruffles her hair causing her to shoot daggers at him, she hated anyone to touch her hair. He felt both Liza and Nicole staring too, waiting to hear if he knew what all the commotion was about. He did have an inkling as to Charlotte's wailing, only because Bob had texted him earlier saying today had been Charlotte's last day at the firm and she'd seemed pretty upset when she'd left. He'd also said she'd walked out with an oil painting of one of the founding partners that had been proudly displayed in the conference room, and that the firm would like to have it returned promptly.
"Your Aunt Charlotte worked her last day at Uncle Bob's office and she's just sad about leaving all her friends behind. You know how you felt when you left your summer camp friends?"
Nicole nodded solemnly and Bicana bobs her head in agreement too. Just then blessedly the oven timer went off signaling that dinner was ready and for a moment they all had the distraction of making their plates and eating. Till Charlotte's agony wafted down the stairway again invading their meal. They were all sitting quietly listening to the muffled sounds of Celine Dion's broken heart when Charles decided he'd had enough of Charlotte's pitty party and that he'd go up and shut this nonsense down himself. She'd been complaining about how awful things were at the firm since she'd came back, over a year ago!
"I'm going up." He stood and headed toward the door Liza was quick to follow.
"Be patient Charles. This is a big deal for Charli she's only ever worked for Bob's firm, she even did her internship there."
"I know, and I'm the one that had to listen to her complain about that place for seven years! This is what she wanted, besides she hasn't been doing much in the office for over a year not since they started tarting her about on the news circuit." Liza couldn't help herself she smiled she was fighting back laughter as she exclaimed
"Tarting?" He smiled too and let go of most of the tension and anger he was clinging onto. She wraps her arms around his waist and hugs him firmly. "Go, and be understanding you were 28 once too. This is just a tiny bump in the road. Help her through this so that the next time a big bump happens she's better prepared." She releases him and doesn't let him answer as she walks back towards the girls. "I'll get the bedtime routine started down here."
Charles makes the ascend into Charlotte's domain he doesn't bother to knock-he knew the door would be unlocked, dumb kid never locks doors. He finds her laying face down on her couch muffled moans escaping the cushion. He takes in the mess that is Charlotte Anita Brooks, she has food from at least four different restaurants littering her coffee table, several boxes of what appear to be client files stacked in three corners of the room, and finally a large ornate oil portrait of a balding middle age white man. Charles assesses the clutter, mess, and stolen property as he clears his throat to announce his presence. She turns her head so she's now making eye with him and as soon as he takes in her red nose, swollen lips and puffy eyes he loses all annoyance and reverts back to the big brother who slayed closet monsters and protected her from the dark unknown.
"Charlotte?"
"Chucky." She says his name around a sad whimper and sniff of her runny nose. Charles moves her feet off the couch forcing her to adjust and move into a sitting position. "You must think I'm a sentimental fool huh?" She doesn't let him answer. "Well it's true I am! And I don't need you telling me it's going to be all ok and that I'm great-talented and that before I know it I'll be the hottest law firm on the entire planet, also that I'm beautiful and tenacious. Spunky and brilliant blah blah blah. Well just save your pep talk because I know all of that!" Of course you. You know everything don't you kid? Charles thinks quietly to himself as she rattles on about how amazing she is. "And furthermore that firm was holding me back now I can really cut loose!..."she stops and becomes suddenly serious "but how can I know I've made the right choice and honestly is it so bad that I'm on TV instead of in the courtroom? Don't I reach more people and have so much more influence now? Also what if I've already peaked? What if Alvin's trial was my swan song? What if I've been out of practice too long and I've lost my edge? What if falling in love with Josh has softened my killer instincts and I'm no longer the shark I use to be?" She sucked in for air ready to start off another long list of insecurities so he leaps at the chance to shut her up.
"I was just going to tell you to return Bob Sr over there." He points to the painting of the creepy old man whose eyes have been on him since he walked into Charli's apartment. She wails and flops backwards in exaggerated agony. "Hey," He says getting serious. "I'm not going to say any of that stuff and it's only partly because you've already said it, but I will say is- who gives a fuck?" She snaps to attention and begins to question him "seriously kid? What's the big fucking deal? If you fail at running your own firm you'll try something else and if that fails well then just say"—and in his best Ariana Grande voice Charles says "thank u, next!" In spite of herself she finally smiles at the sheer volume of his dadness. "The only thing you need at the end of the day is love, and if you think for a single moment that myself, Nicole, Bianca, and all the people who love you the most won't be here to pick you up and dust you off, then for the first time in your life you're wrong. So I say embrace your second wind, lean into your fear and whatever happens happens...hey how do you eat an elephant?"
"One bite at a time..." and then she adds snarlingly "ass first." They both laugh and share a silent moment in memory of the eccentricities of their late mother. "Ok Chuck-stain I'll kill it with the Boyz II Men and Sarah McLachlan...What's for dinner?" He looks from the puffy faced Charlotte to the hoards of food sprawled out before them, she follows his gaze and pronounces that that was her depression food, now she was ready for real food! Ignoring her he asks as causally as he can
"So you said something about love when you mentioned Josh just a moment ago?" He struggles make eye contact with him.
"Yeah, for a while now but uh, hey don't say anything to Liza just yet...not until I tell Josh ok?" He nods and asks when that might be and also asks why hasn't she said something to Josh yet. "Things have been so wild with the move and wrapping up work at the firm I just...I wanted it to be uneventful you know? Like mellow...I wanted a real moment not something hyped up and piled on top of a bunch of other life changes. Ya know?" He nodded and he stayed there for the next couple of hours and listened to her ideas for the new firm and again reassured her insecurities, when unexpectedly there was a sharp knock on the door and then in rushes a red faced Josh. Charli jumps up from the couch and runs from the room to the bathroom without greeting Josh at all. Charles did hear her murmur under her breath about not being cute right now as she scurried away like a startled fawn. Charles stood and lazily stretched as Josh stares after Charli's retreating backside.
"What is going on?! Is charli ok?? I've been trying to get ahold of her for hours! She was suppose to call after she left the office today, I thought she was dead!" Charles tried not to take pleasure in Joshes worry over Charlotte, but he couldn't help it, it was nice to know this kid (the very same kid that had unceremoniously punched him in the face at a picnic) cared enough about his baby sister to run over here (literally run judging by the his red face and all around sweatiness) to assure her safety. Josh was growing on him more and more. Charles calmly walked Josh through Charlotte's tumultuous afternoon and the last two hours they'd spent together.
"Oh." Josh says as his humility returns to him now that he knows Charli is safe. "Sorry, for barging in like that. I'll...uh, be on my way. Can you ask Charli to call me when she's feeling better?" As he's turning to leave Charles calls out to him
"Hey, why don't you stay? I needed to be in bed half an hour ago. It's finals week on campus and I have an early morning." Josh looks uncertain and states that if Charli wanted him there she would have called him and she certainly would not have run away at the mere sight of him just now. "Nah, she just doesn't want you to see her vulnerable. Give her a minute while she puts her war face on. Trust me she's glad you're here" He smiles and walks past Josh towards the door.
"I hate when she does that whole hard ass thing...when will she see I love her soft mushy parts too?...And why is that old dude (referring to the painting) following my every move?" Josh says this more to himself than Charles and in reality Charles isn't entirely sure Josh knows that he just dropped the love bomb in front of him.
"She always comes around." And in an effort to get out before things get too awkward he makes his departure. "Tell her I'll see her tomorrow...g'night Josh." Josh looks up from examining the painting in the corner.
"Yeah okay, good night Charles." From the hallway he hears Charlotte emerge from the bathroom (no doubt in full war paint with her hair combed and her teeth freshly brushed) 'hey, I see you've met Bobby Senior.' Charles makes his way home. As he enters he doesn't have to worry that the girls didn't brush their teeth or that they didn't get tucked into bed lovingly with a kiss good night because he knows and trusts Liza handled it all. So he makes his way to his own bed where he finds her scribbling away on the same manuscript from earlier she looks up and without saying a word beckons him to her. He sits on the side of the bed and fills her in on everything, except the dual admissions of love. Which as it turns out he didn't have to tell Liza about anyway because as he crawls into bed and Liza curls up next to him she asks
"So who do you think will say I love you first? Josh or Charli?" He giggles and pulls her to him in the dark and says his money is on Josh. Liza agrees and the two drift off to sleep in each other's embrace.